Seismic activity in Denmark: detection level and recent felt earthquakes

Abstract

The Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) records seismological data at six locations in Denmark (Fig. 1) and all data from these stations are manually reviewed for events like earthquakes and explosions. The identified events are analysed and located, in many cases using supporting data from stations outside Denmark. Seismic events have been recorded instrumentally in Denmark since 1929, but earthquakes felt in Denmark have been reported as far back as 1515 (Lehmann 1956; Gregersen et al. 1998; GEUS 2012). This article reports on the developments in detection level of both man-made events and natural earthquakes within the Danish Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) from 2000 to 2012. Changes in detection level are mainly due to the availability of data from new seismic stations in Sweden and Norway as well as from a GEUS test station at Gøttrup in NW Jylland. As a case study, the list of events on and around Bornholm is reviewed. Also described here are the reported intensities at two recent felt events in Denmark (North Sea magnitude 4.3 on 19 February 2010 and Kattegat magnitude 4.1 on 6 August 2012).